Werewolf

Deeply flawed, but fundamentally decent, I approach life with an irreverent attitude toward certain modern social conventions, while harboring a profound nostalgia for bygone traditions of honor and decency. We each have our own code, and I succeed and fail by mine.

Followers

Saturday, May 22, 2010

Top Gun: Greatest Movie Intro Ever!

Like the Rock of Gibraltar, few things are as timelessly awesome and consistent as the title/opening sequence of Top Gun. Between the perfectly harmonized music, mind-blowing sounds, evocative imagery of seamless naval flight operations, and unabashed conveyance of Pax Americana, it covers all of its' bases. It's tough to dispute the all encompassing awesomeness of these first four cinematic minutes and with the exception of the opening sequence of Casino Royale, the werewolf has yet to find a film that gets so much right so quickly.

The werewolf's father is the consummate technology geek and is always upgrading his home theater systems. One of the best tests you can perform to assess the quality of your domestic entrainment set-up is load the Blu-Ray of Top Gun and crank the sound as far as your willing to risk it. If you're spleen is shaking, kidney's are tickled, and the cockles of your American heart are teased, life is grand. It is full-proof and worthy test.

Although far from perfect (is there a perfect film?), Top Gun is an undisputed classic. The Cold War themes, unapologetic pro-Americanism, pro-U.S. military, plus a killer cast that launched multiple careers. Household names such as Tom Cruise, Val Kilmer, Tim Robbins, Tom Skerrit, Meg Ryan, Anthony Edwards, Michael Ironside, and Kelly McGillis all showed up in the cast. Plus, do you remember the call-sign for the token black pilot? I bet "Hollywood" comes to mind. Wrong! "Sundown" is his call-sign, I shit you not. This a legacy of many a night devoted to pub trivia.